There’s nothing like completing a years-in-the-making-garden to give one a new lease on life!

While each of Parterre’s existing gardens are tweaked each year, the Woodland Garden didn’t truly deserve the “garden” designation; for the most part I just let it be… a collection of various hostas and other obliging shade plants, under a thick collection of very tall, European Little Leaf Lindens existing from the former Belmont estate (a fortuitous, elegant start).

Then 6 years ago a mini wind tunnel whipped through this part of the property, taking down a massive old gingko which demolished trees, thick shrubs, and ground covers in its path.

However!…it opened up enough areas to the sun that it was apparent that struggling to create a beautiful space would no longer be a chore. Not only would I have the delight of creating a new garden (that I had not done since 1999 when we moved into our home) but the woodland garden is in sharp contrast to the rest of the 3 acres which are totally open to the skies. It is also the only woodland garden on the Avenue.

So let me set the scene…at almost a half acre it’s a long narrow space which benefits from the interest that shaped borders provide.

The 2 entrees to this space are intentionally discrete to convey a sense of secrecy, and thusly, intrigue. The east entry is through an arch in the yew hedge separating it from the Green and White garden.

The west entry is outside the main garden’s gate, through a narrow path at the right of the Dovecote.

A burm, put in many years ago on the largest bed running the length of the garden, allows the layering of plant material to add a major design note.

Sunlight filtering through and picking out the tips of the ferns and hostas is a welcome image (it had always been so dark in these spaces)! As is a rare specimen Cercis which serves as a noble centerpiece on this small island in the Woodland.

Every garden deserves a bench; a few years ago I decided to paint the existing black iron one in my favorite shade of “French blue” (hoping that this gesture might get me a big step closer to completing the woodland).

I couldn’t close without sharing the design that has become the signature of this now complete garden, a centuries-old pattern appearing in many cultures…the Paisley. It was my gardener who surprised me with this presentation, not knowing that the paisley design was a favorite of mine. Here, a Tassel Fern (on the left) cozies up to a chartreuse hosta ‘Stained Glass.’ Each Paisley is a different size and of varying plant selection.

Maybe there’s a paisley in your future! In the meantime, have a safe and glorious Labor Day Weekend.